Saturday, April 16, 2011

MS 150 IN TEXAS THIS WEEKEND


MS 150
They are rolling out
from Houston to Austin
13,000 riders
are now
doing it
they are out there in Texas
the temps are about 50 degrees
and they are
"pumped"
with the crowds cheering
and
one thing on their minds:

CURE FOR MS

Laura Roorda is there
she is following her daughter
Shauna and Dixie
via car
and standing at each stop that will be made along this long and arduous trip
yet another year
as
they ride
up hill/down hill
hard riding for the CURE OF MS.
Raising money for research
research that is bringing us closer
closer to
a
CURE
for this disease. 

The research is exciting, including this just in:

Apr 14, 2011
Biogen Idec announced that the experimental oral therapy BG-12 significantly reduced the proportion of people with MS who experienced relapses in a two-year study of more than 1200 people with relapsing-remitting MS. Although its exact mode of action is not known, BG-12 is thought to inhibit immune cells and molecules involved in MS attacks on the brain and spinal cord. The results were announced in an April 11 press release. Data analysis is ongoing and the company expects to provide a full report at an upcoming medical meeting. Another trial of BG-12 is currently underway.


Background: Multiple sclerosis involves immune system attacks against brain and spinal cord tissues. Although its exact mechanism of action is not known, BG-12, an oral drug, is thought to inhibit immune cells and molecules and may be protective against damage to the brain and spinal cord. In an earlier phase 2 study, compared to inactive placebo, the highest tested BG-12 dose led to a 69% reduction in active inflammation on MRI scans from weeks 12 to 24. Side effects (formally known as adverse events) included abdominal pain, flushing, headache, fatigue, and feeling hot. (The Lancet 2008;372:1463-1472).


This Study: The primary goal of the DEFINE study was to determine whether BG-12 could decrease the proportion of participants experiencing relapses and whether the agent was safe and well tolerated. Secondary objectives included assessing BG-12’s effects on the frequency of relapses, disability progression, and disease activity detected by MRI.
Participants were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups receiving different doses, or a group receiving placebo. According to the press release, in both groups taking BG-12, the primary endpoint was met, meaning a significant reduction in the proportion of people experiencing relapses at 2 years. All secondary endpoints were met as well in these groups, with significant reductions in relapse rate, disease activity on MRI scans, and in disability progression as detected by the EDSS, a standard scale that measures disability. According to the press release, adverse events were similar to those experienced during the Phase 2 study (those included abdominal pain, flushing, headache, fatigue, and feeling hot):


Comment: These positive results are the first reported from this large, Phase 3 study of BG-12. Full details and evaluation of this study, and from another Phase 3 study now underway, should help define the safety and promise of BG-12 as a potential therapy for relapsing MS.


This weekend
those bikes
will get a work-out
there in TX
and you never know what Texas weather
will be like,
so those riders will be focused
but one eye will be on the sky
their faces will feel the wind and the sun
and
you can believe
that all hearts
will be in it to win it
for a loved one
and
I know
one loved one
Laura
will be screaming her head off
at the finish line
as
they all cross that line.
BUT
when her daughter and Dixie
make that final
pedal and get to the end
our
warrior
Laura
will have her arms in the air
and her lungs will be just expanding to the
extreme
with tears all over her face
as
yet one more year
as
a strong woman living with
MS
is filled with a grateful heart
that her daughter
is working and pedalling so hard
to find the cure
NOW for her Mom and all those others.

MS is on its way to the history books
and
all of us are ever so ready
for it to be in the past
so that
thousands can be free
of it and its symptoms
and
its disruptions of lives well lived.
MS SUCKS

Texas they say does
EVERYTHING
in a big way!
So then,
you can bet
this ride is
goin to be
BIG
and
greatly successful
enjoy
this you tube
from a past ride
Shauna was there then too!


><

Follow up on
Lily the Black Bear in Ely MN:
the little cub Jason's body was returned to the
researcher Dr Rogers at the bear center
by the
DNR.
We wait now for their results on the autopsy
(who knows how long that will take)
We'll see.
Meanwhile,yesterday in MN
concerned citizens called the DNR
to report a young bear near the road out there
and they were concerned FOR THE BEAR
perhaps being run over in the road.
An officer of the DNR
was dispatched to the roadside where folks had
pulled their cars to the side of the road
and this young bear appeared lost
but
was NOT threatening.
After an attempt to "scare" the bear to no avail,
the
DNR official
then
SHOT AND KILLED THE BEAR
in front of the concerned citizens.
Let me repeat this:
the bear was not threatening human life,
appeared lost and was near the road.
The representative of the state of MN
wearing a uniform of
the Department of Natural Resources
wearing a revolver
SHOT A NORTH AMERICAN BLACK BEAR
that appeared to be a yearling
DEAD.
The citizens had called out of concern
FOR this bear and its safety
not of "their safety"
and
now we have a DEAD BEAR
and
Minnestotans that have been traumatized
as a result
of this representative of the State of MN.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME???

As I listened to this on the news yesterday, I was incredulous, I was outraged, I was sick at heart. I listened to the eyewitness accounts of those who made the initial phone call, I saw the bear, I heard from the DNR official.
My mind was spinning.
Do they not have "tranquilizer guns there"
could he not have tranquilized this bear and with assistance safely taken it back into the woods?
Could he not have called the Bear Researcher Dr Lynn Rogers to assist in this matter?
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?

The same MN Department of Natural Resources that now has a new man at the top who has decided that he will not sign a bill to
PROTECT THE COLLARED AND BRIGHTLY RIBBONED NORTH AMERICAN BLACK BEARS
FROM BEING KILLED DURING HUNT SEASON?
Perhaps now I am understanding why,
if he allows officers to pull a gun and shoot a bear that is lost but of no threat to the public beside the road.

MINNESOTA IS IS TIME TO WAKE UP, TO TAKE A STAND FOR THE
NORTH AMERICAN BLACK BEARS.
There are more than 20,000 bears there
and less than 20 that need your protection
for research and education
in Ely MN.
Ethical Hunters would not kill a radio collared/brightly ribboned black bear,
the new man at that DNR
says
hunters can't see collars and ribbons?
and
I say
if hunters cannot see that
in low light conditions
it is too damn dark
to pull your weapon and take a shot
and any moving thing in the woods then.
BuT
yesterday's action of a representative who is paid by the State of MN
has shown through careless action
that it is past time
to
STOMP
to send letters, flood the desks of those in power
to examine what is happening
at the MN DNR
and to
get a law
in place before the next hunt
to
PROTECT THE NORTH AMERICAN BLACK BEARS
who are
RIBBONED/COLLARED
NOW
and
for generations to come
and
for the research that is humane and
protect them from killing.
It is also past time
to examine
those working for the state
and
how often
"THEY PULL THEIR WEAPON"
and kill wildlife
for the sake of killing
when
assisting them to safety
is the proper and humane course of action.
STAND UP PEOPLE
It is time to write letters to legislature to get a law passed
and to let your voices be heard
and demand
Protection of the precious few
Radio Collared and brighly ribboned
North American Black Bears.
Perhaps it is also time
to ask
that the DNR be looked into as well since they
seem to need some addtional training in when to fire
a loaded weapon and kill a lost or confused bear standing near a highway vs. lead or tranquilize it to get it back to safety!

Governor Mark Dayton  Office of the Governor
130 State Capitol
75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55155
Telephone: 651-201-3400
Toll Free: 800-657-3717
Minnesota Relay 800-627-3529
Fax: 651-797-1850

 

Respect of all living things
seems to be forgotten.

The fire is burning brightly, the embers are hot, thoughts on the winds of healing, of hope
and
of those willing to take a stand.
Our hearts go out to all in Pulaski VA devasted by the recent Tornados and those in the South
who are reeling by the effects of the Tornados as well.

Walk In Beauty
DRSES
author of
Healing Heartaches, Stories of Loss and Life











3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Go Shauna and Dixie and all the others who ride today to "strike out" MS. I am with you in spirit!
For the North Am Bears... S sad about little Jason , but survival of the fittest, and that little guy was to delicate for the struggle to survive. As for the yearling that was shot,it is repugnant beyond words. People are idiots and heartless......
Be well.

Anonymous said...

helloooo.
perhaps ignorance and idiocy will someday
be wiped out.. people are always amazing me with
their assinine words and actions,and then look at
the media and the irresponsible way they
report " news "... hmmm.... not great eamples
of humanity I'm thinking...
Best wished to Laura and Shauna in Texas with
the big ride... MS SUCKS, LAURA ROCKS !
am off work today but have lots to do to ready myself for my short getaway to visit my Dad and
family... can hardly wait !
Great weekend to all ♥
hugging my angels, sign me,
A.

Anonymous said...

Celebrating this Saturday night with R&R. Hope everyone has a lovely weekend. agree, people are BOH crazy and stupid. What has hapened to the gene pool? Wonder if Clorine would help?